To Hold a Life in Your Hands
by Freshpugg
Summary: Takashi Shirogane thought he was done being a parent to lost space children. Literally done. That is, until the paladins bring back the lone survivor of a Galra attack, and she's really too cute for him to say no to. Besides, how much trouble could it be? A lot, when Honerva wants to get her hands on the new member of his family. (Rated T to be safe) (Updates every 1-2 weeks)
1. Prologue

Summary:Takashi Shirogane thought he was done being a parent to lost space children. Literally done. That is, until the paladins bring back the lone survivor of a Galra attack, and she's really too cute for him to say no to. Besides, how much trouble could it be? A lot, apparently, when Honerva wants to get her hands on the new member of his family, and one of the crew members has a fleeting crush on him. He should just retire by now, right? (Rated T just to be safe)

IMPORTANT: Shiro (and the other paladins) show up in the second chapter. This is a backstory chapter for Ayla, the main character, and she doesn't actually meet Shiro until Chapter Two. Please read this chapter, since it will be relevant to the story later on, but doesn't actually have anything to do with the paladins. If you feel it necessary, continue to that chapter, otherwise, happy reading!

Chapter One- The Attack

(Warning: Mild language at some points)

Her mother had always told her that everyone had a little drum beating in their chest, and the only way to stop it from playing was to destroy it. That was what the Galra did. They destroyed planets and had been weighing down on her people for many decades now. Only the oldest remembered a time when they were free of their overlords, when they had open skies and could travel off world, to see the stars. Even so, their planet, Kiamia, was ripe with life, and the clouds were a soft sunset purple and pink color that hovered low over the small villages which dotted the lush green landscape. Crystal water stretched over half the planet, and beautiful mountains of navy colors stretched on the horizon, soft peaks highlighting the pale rust colored planet that circled just out of the orbit of the tiny planet. The two suns in the sky shone a pale white, and a faint blue sky stretched over the elaborate landscape. They were just a small planet with trees of all kinds of blue, violet, turquoise, rose, and a whole pallet of other colors that the galaxy considered a "backwater planet". Ayla Dylis had always lived on this planet, ever since she was born. She knew all the nooks and crannies around her small village, and the forest around the small valley she lived in was her only escape from the prying eyes of the galra as they patrolled her small village, looking for any sign of trouble.

Ayla herself was well known around the village, being one of the only children who hadn't been taken away for four years in a row at the local reaping, where the galra recruited soldiers for their arsenal. Luckily this year, like always, Ayla had been of no interest, her almost white, partially translucent skin and scrawny form being of no interest to the recruitment team. Her mother had practically collapsed in relief when her daughter wasn't selected to be taken away to the training camps on the other side of the planet. The galra had been taking children for the past two or three decades, turning the passive Kiamians into a full armada within a few decades. The village had been in a time of peace when a conspicuous rumor began to spread. The village had heard word of a new force, the voltron coalition, fighting against the galra. To most, this seemed impossible. The galra couldn't possibly be defeated!

The only sign that these rumors were true was when a small pod crashed in a nearby swamp, with no survivors. They'd managed to find the database before the ship sunk into the depths of the planet forever, but it was all encrypted beyond the powers of the small survey tablets the locals used. The pod still rested where it had crashed, half sunk in the mud, and the locals had steered clear of it ever since. Everything seemed to be in it's normal sorts in the months afterward, the reapings and patrols on normal schedule as always. It seemed the galra had turned a blind eye to the pod, and the "Voltron".

Until the day when tears of fire rained from the sky. She was just carrying laundry with her mother, going down to the pristine stream near the village, her cute white and blue dress clearly defined against the trees as she followed her mother's dark skin and ashy hair. Her mother's deep earth brown and red clothing always reminded Ayla of the nearby planet that always hung low in the sky above them. As they approached the stream, she suddenly heard a loud sound. The sound of something exploding, not too far from where they were standing. The trees even seemed to shed leaves as another explosion made the ground shake under Ayla's bare feet. After a few beats of silence, her mother looked up, before dropping her basket. Ayla, unable to help herself, looked up.

Fire rained from the sky, the large shadowy shapes of the galra cruisers under fire by some mysterious force. She couldn't tear her eyes away as one of the low orbit cruisers began its descent downwards, its beam at the ready. The deep purple on the edge of the ship glared down on her as she dropped the basket she'd been carrying on the ground, the colorful textiles falling out onto the damp soil. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. Cruisers never came this far down into orbit, and by the looks of it, it was landing. Fear suddenly gripped her stomach, beginning to choke up her throat.

Her mother cursed under her breath, before grabbing Ayla's hand. "Damn Galra. Come on!" She said, her smooth voice suddenly gruff. Ayla barely had time to squeak in pain before her mother dragged her into the woods, their bare feet crushing the grass, and dark branches catching and tugging at their hair. Ayla could hardly keep up, her fair hair getting caught in several branches, and having to be untwined before they could continue. The roots seemed to catch her feet, tripping her up and throwing her to the ground. Each time, her mother dragged her back onto her feet, telling her to watch the finally got on the path back to the village, racing along the compact dirt path before coming over the small rise, to the hill overlooking the place Ayla had lived for as long as she could remember.

Her mother looked out over the village, smoke coming from the half destroyed huts, and screams drifting through the air as something awful happened to their people. Galra centuries marched down the streets, firing at anyone who came near their gleaming metal shells. Her mother covered her eyes before Ayla could see the horrors, turning around as quickly as she could. The faint ivory markings on her mother's arms glimmered in the light as they hurried back into the safety of the woods woods, leaving the bloody chaos behind. "Mommy! Where are we going?" Ayla whined, exhausted from running so far. Her mother dashed off the path, calloused feet gripping the moss underfoot as they continued through the dense undergrowth.

After what seemed like hours of running, Ayla's mother finally stopped, in the middle of a small clearing. The tall trees were ancient, layers upon layers of woven roots sticking out of the ground, and pale pink and green leaves casting thin shadows in the faint light of the sun. Ayla collapsed to the ground, sucking as much air into her lungs as possible before looking over at her tall, rugged mother. The woman knelt at the base of a tree, digging amongst the roots for something. Ayla crept over to see what it was, as her mother pulled a small, old sack out of the roots, tossing it in the shadows nearby. "Listen to me, Ayla." She began, crawling over to inspect the contents. "You have to go."

Ayla sat on her knees watching as her mother drew a pistol, military grade, out of the sack, setting it on the ground. The pistol was like a pocket sized version of the ones the galra carried, and had an old, almost dated look to it. "But where, mommy?" She asked, giant eyes filling with tears. "I don't wanna leave!"

Her mother scoffed. "You're going to have to grow a spine, girl." She tossed the bag into the roots of the tree once again, frowning. Up close, Ayla could see that her mother's deep green eyes matched the tree nearby, and that her mother's earth colored skin was as soft as it had always been, only disrupted by a long scar that ran down from her eye. A piece left over from the war, her mother had always said. Rich gray curls and long, curving markings on her mother's cheeks and neck glowed softly in the shadow of the large tree above as she handed Ayla the pistol. "Take this."

Ayla looked down at it, confused, until she noticed her mother's serious expression, the scary one that always made Ayla think her mother would kill someone if they even spoke. Ayla handed it back, her tiny mind trying to process what her mother was doing. "Ayla." Her mother's voice had a hint of warning. "Take the damn gun right now."

When her mother cursed, she meant what she was saying. Ayla took it back, her expression guilty as a child who'd been caught stealing sweet buns. Her mother smiled, that rogue smile that always made Ayla soar a little inside. "Now, you're going to stay right here until I come back for you. Shoot anything that moves." Her mother kissed her head softly, getting to her feet. "Understand me?" Ayla nodded, her lips pursed as she held tears back. "Yes, mommy."

"Good." Her mother lifted her up, balancing Ayla on her hip like she'd done a million times before, walking up to the base of the tree. The ancient tree had thousands of roots that her mother climbed over like she'd been there a thousand times, and the deep olive green leaves obscured the branches and anything that might be up inside them. She stood on her tiptoes, placing Ayla in one of the lowest branches of the tree before smiling up at her daughter. Ayla grasped at the branch with her free hand as tears finally overcame the barriers of her eyelids, pouring down her usually soft cheeks, that were now smeared with grime from falling so much.

"You're so brave, my little star." Her mother said, caressing Ayla's cheek. "I love you so much." Her mother's hand rested on her cheek for just a moment, before her mother backed away, running out into the woods without anything. Ayla thought her mother was abandoning her, before she realized:

Her mother was fighting back.

The discovery was heart wrenching at best, since everyone knew that the galra were basically impossible to defeat alone. Ayla began to cry harder, sobbing as she clung to the ancient tree her mother had left her in.

"Mommy… come back.."

Silence was her only answer.

Note: Hello! This is my first fic that I've (literally) ever posted! Hopefully you enjoyed this chapter, and please comment down below if you feel the inclination! I'm also looking for a beta reader, since at the moment, this is entirely once edited by me. So, with that said, let me know what you think, and don't be afraid to throw some ideas at me if you're interested. Also, I do not own Voltron.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter Two- The Rescue

(Warning: Brief description of violence/setting for the first two paragraphs)

Keith had seen destruction before. But not quite like this. He'd seen buildings on fire, but not the bodies that had suffocated in the flames. He'd seen the wake of war that the galra left behind on many of the planets, but this was nothing like to others. This was a massacre. Lance, who was a few steps behind him, had his bayard up in position, prepared to fire at moments notice as the group of paladins trekked through the completely eradicated ruins that had once been buzzing with life. Even the trees were burnt, the giant patches of black they'd seen on the fly down a lot bigger and more terrifying in person. It was like all the color had bled out of the planet, the vibrant hues that once manifested on this planet charred down to black and gray. The people that had once thrived were now wiped out in a single, fell swoop.

Pidge whimpered as they continued, some of the bodies ripped apart by blasters, others just stone still, like they'd just passed out where they stood. Keith tried not to focus on the bloody images as they continued. "Shiro told us it would be bad…" Lance murmured under his breath, comforting himself. Hunk also had his bayard out, his usually bright eyes sweeping over the wreckage with a mournful sadness, the kind that Keith didn't feel. He only felt numbness where his guilt usually resided, just couldn't manage any kind of emotion. No anger, no burning desire to find the galra who did this and give them a taste of their own medicine. Nothing. Pidge sighed, long and heavy as they came to a stop at the edge of the village, where the last few huts faded into the giant, looming forest that was just a few steps away. The trampled village path was still dotted with blood, even now, bright and clotted under their boots as they took a moment to take in what they'd just seen. Keith examined the faces of the other paladins, noticing the crestfallen expressions, and that Pidge had just started to cry, the sights all too much. She was only maybe fifteen! Kids didn't deserve to see these horrors. No one did.

"Do you think we should tell Shiro? About the..." Lance nodded back towards the village. "You know, what happened?" He murmured, his face shadowed by the gloom that seemed to hang in the air around them.

"I have a feeling he already knows." Keith said in response, looking back at the woods. "Telling him won't make much of a difference. There are no survivors."

Pidge and Hunk nodded gravely, while Lance just looked into space, almost in a haze. Keith was slightly worried for the three of them, given they weren't even legal adults yet, let alone prepared to see these kinds of things. Keith was about to give the order to go back to the lions when he heard something. A sniff of sorts, like someone was breathing. He whirled around, trying to pinpoint where the noise was coming from, when Pidge gasped. "Look!" She shouted, breathless as she pointed towards a nearby ruin. A faint white figure stood a few huts away, almost like a mirage. "C'mon! Let's go!" Pidge shouted back at them, dashing towards the ghostly figure. Keith could hardly believe it as he scrambled after her, Hunk and Lance in tow. The rounded a few destroyed shacks, the flicker of hope in their chests reignited. As they came closer, the figure looked up.

The young girl stood, looking down, clearly crying. She wore a grimy, slightly stained dress, and her face had a bit of dried blood smeared on it, with some also dotting her arms and legs. Her ratty blonde, almost white hair was knotted with twigs and leaves, as if she'd come from the forest itself, and her tiny feet were cut and bruised. As far as they could tell, she was alone. When she saw the four paladins, she stumbled back, hugging herself. As if it would be some protection from the strangers. Keith couldn't help but to notice her wide eyes were a deep, pristine blue that matched the hem of her dress, kind of like Lance's.

For a moment, they just stood there, staring at each other. The poor child backed away slowly, her hands trembling as she pulled something out of her belt, a blaster that was covered in grime and dirt. Lance was about to shoot it out of her hand when Keith stopped him, putting a hand on his shoulder with a look that practically said _let me handle this. _Keith took off his helmet, placing it down on the ground nearby, along with his bayard. "Hey there.." He said uneasily, crouching down on the ground so he was at the girl's level. His hair gently brushed his forehead as the long black locks tumbled down the back of his neck. "Are you lost?"

She shook her head, her mouth curving into a pursed frown. "N-no..." She whispered, as if she couldn't say it for everyone to hear. "I l-live here with m-mommy.." Her tiny voice was frail as she lowered the gun a little. Keith suddenly realized that her mother must've left her. Poor girl. His heart stung with the first emotion he'd felt all afternoon as he watched her begin to fall into sobs, the gun falling from her hand and clattering to the ground. "B-But then t-the bad guys c-came _-hic- _and hurt e-everybody..!"

Lance came forwards, his previous frown replaced with a gentle smile. "Hey, hey.. It's okay now. You're safe." He wrapped his arms around her without hesitation, something Keith could probably never do with that much courage. "We're here to rescue you, okay? It's going to be fine." He rubbed the girl's back as she hiccuped and sobbed, holding onto the blue paladin. Keith watched the heartfelt moment, only to realize the possible peril of the situation.

"We should get back to the Atlas. We can't stay here, just in case the galra do come back."

Although Keith trusted the scans they'd conducted before going down to the planet, the galra had a knack for coming back when you least expected it, and wreaking havoc. He picked up his helmet, his bayard vanishing. Pidge had a small screen open, and was looking up as she conducted scans. "We're still clear." She reported, her green eyes searching over the glowing hologram. "I've also let Allura know we're coming back now. She's gathering the rest of the research team now." The mood seemed lighter now, at least. Hunk was watching the trees, only glancing back to make sure something wasn't coming from the other direction to attack them. Lance got up, holding the girl like she weighed nothing. The young girl clutched Lance's neck, watching the paladins with wary eyes as they started the long walk back to the lions.

The docking bay was busy. The team that had gone down to the surface of the nearby planet of Kiamac was back, the lions of Voltron being fussed over by the mechanics, to make sure the paladins hadn't banged them up too much. The small transports brought supplies from the wormhole from Salaze, a planet that had recently joined the coalition, and the MFE's were in the process of being charged as the typical trafic of the hangar proceeded as usual. Although it was unorganized at best, Captain Shirogane couldn't help but to be proud of this operation as he watched, the program he virtually built with his own hands thriving as pilots and mechanics worked together to bring the ships back home from flight. As a matter of fact, the entire Galaxy Garrison had made this once unfinished piece of junk into a network of fast moving communications and a lethal fighting force in a matter of days, that stood a chance against Honerva and her miniature army of Alteans.

But there was a small group in particular he was the most impressed by. The paladins of Voltron, who he'd mentored practically since they first met, who were climbing out of their lions. The mission they were returning from was one he'd assigned them personally, having them go planetside with a research team to investigate the distress call that had come from that planet some time ago. Although they had relayed some information back through the bridge, he only knew the parameters. No known survivors, total destruction. Shiro could say that he'd feared as much, but in reality, it was a bit of a shock. No survivors? Literally none? That couldn't be right.

As he approached the black lion, the group of researchers nodded to him, showing the mutual respect that most showed the captain of the ship. Although they weren't required to salute, since they were rebels and not his soldiers, it was nice to know that they at least acknowledged his position. Besides, Shiro didn't want people to salute him. It was a bit awkward and uncomfortable, although he tolerated it anyways. "Hey Shiro!" Matt waved to him, breaking Shiro's train of thought as the captain slowed his pace. Matt jogged over, his long hair tousled, and goggles perched on top of his head as he smiled brightly. "Did you hear? We discovered a new breed of tree that turns different colors depending on its age!"

Shiro wasn't a science geek, but smiled anyways. "So kind of like you?"

Matt chuckled darkly, punching his shoulder in good humor. "Shut up! You're the one who looks like a grandpa!" They both shared a brief chuckle before one of the researchers called Matt over. Matt waved, before glancing back at Shiro. "Anyways, I gotta go!" Shiro laughed as Matt waved goodbye, returning to his group with a hurried stride.

Shiro continued his course to the black lion, where one of the members of the Blade of Marmora was talking to Keith, her expression serious. "... mission was a failure. Don't mention it to anyone." She suddenly noticed Shiro walking over, nodding her head at Keith, and walked away. Keith sighed, looking up at Shiro with a forced smile as the captain stopped in front of him.

"So, I take it that the mission had a bad turnout?" Shiro said sympathetically once he noticed the downfallen expression that had begun to cloud up the paladin's face. Keith shrugged. "It was… complicated." He said glumly, his helmet hanging loosely from his hand. The other paladins approached the two at the edge of Shiro's vision, all with similar expressions of exhaustion and disdain. Even Allura looked worn out and defeated. Shiro waited for them to stop, his expression warm and welcoming to contrast theirs. Once they stopped, he noticed something strange.

They had a passenger. A young girl, probably not older than five clutched Lance's hand, her long hair tangled with foliage and blue eyes wide with fear. Her bare feet left little scuffs of dirt on the light gray floor of the hangar, and little cuts on her feet looked swollen with what could possibly be an infection if they didn't treat it right away. She looked at Shiro with a wary glance, hiding behind Lance's leg as Shiro looked her down. Besides the injury, she seemed to be unharmed beyond a simple fix. "Hi there." Shiro said, bending down to see her better. To him, her face was a bit fuzzy on the edges. Hmm. He probably needed glasses or an eye fix once they got back to Earth. He offered a hand. "I'm Takashi Shirogane, the captain of this ship." The girl, to his surprise, took his hand, her small palm soft in his calloused human one. He'd seen his fair share of refugees from other planets, but she was probably one of the youngest he'd seen up close. Her white, almost translucent skin was smeared with dirt and blood, only disrupted by the streams of tears that made silver trails down her cheeks. His heart squeezed a little just at the sight of her.

"Can you tell me your name?" He asked as gently as possible. She looked up at Lance, who nodded down at her. After a moment of her looking down at their hands, which were currently entwined, she looked back up at him.

"Ayla."

Shiro smiled. "That's a lovely name." He said, not wanting to make her any more uncomfortable. He was usually fine with kids, but she was probably traumatized to an extent by the horrible things she witnessed. "Why don't you come with me so we can get you checked out? Then maybe we can get something to eat. How does that sound?" Ayla nodded, quiet once again, letting go of Lance's in turn for his. Lance looked slightly hurt for a moment, before turning his attention to something else.

Shiro returned his attention to the paladins. "All of you can go get some rest. We'll do a debrief sometime later." The paladins saluted wearily, before tromping away back towards the exit of the hangar, dragging their feet. Shiro gently held Ayla's hand, guiding her towards the elevator to the upper levels. Once they were inside, he looked back down at her, just to check. She was looking at the glowing buttons, her shoulders slumped as she watched them as if they were about to pop out of the wall. "So…" He said, feeling a bit awkward. "How old are you, Ayla?"

"Five cycles."

"Ah. Do you have a last name?"

"Dylis."

"Hm. That's very pretty. Do you have a mommy and daddy?"

"I had a mommy. But she left to fight."

Shiro suddenly felt an overwhelming sadness. The poor girl had lost her mother to the attack! His heart began to constrict again, the memories of when he was a boy coming back into his mind. His own parents had perished, their faces fading from his memory still. He had always feared that he would one day lose those faces, and those fears suddenly leaped up again. He had long since healed from losing them, but the wound was still fresh for her. He squeezed her hands, trying to convey all the emotions he felt into a gesture. She clutched his hand tighter, looking up at him.

"Will you be my daddy, now that mommy is gone?"

He couldn't bring himself to say no. It was too hard. He couldn't leave this child with no one to look after them. The image of her going to a home like Keith's previous ones made him sick. Besides, it wouldn't be forever, right? She could stay with different members of the crew throughout the day, and could maybe even learn with the cadets if she wanted to. He could take care of her until she had a new family he knew would take care of her. He would make it work. As long as she wasn't alone.

"Of course." He said, choking up a little bit on the words. "Of course I will."

Note: Sooooo... that was a very sad and happy second chapter. This should clear some things up for Ayla, but also kind of how she and Shiro met. I also figured out just now how to add character tags so.. yay! Anyways, hopefully you enjoyed this chapter, and next time, we get some cute, fluffy stuffs that I love writing for no reason at all! Yay! See you next time, beautiful people!


	3. Chapter 2

Search results for: sena system planet kiamac

_Kiamac: A study on thermodynamics _by **Weyla Sanev**

In this detailed report, we explore the thermodynamics and wonderful orbital trajectory of the widely unknown planet of Kiamac.

Search words found: Kiamac, System

_Origins and People of Kiamac _by **Eias Farr**

Have you ever wondered where most of the galaxy's exotic herbal remedies come from? Have you ever wondered who makes them? Well, the answer is right here in the backwater planetary system of Sena.

Search words found: Kiamac, Sena, Planet

_Small Kiamian transport for sale- lightly used and still in good shape! _By **Farna Hub**

Small Kiamian transport available for just 30,000 gak, in impeccable shape and with an included two seated cockpit.

Search words found: Kiamac

_Lost: Uncharted Territories of the Outer rim _by **Mevla Darnes**

A look at all the uncharted cultures and planets of the outer rim.

Search words found: All

Keith scrolled down the list of search results on his orange holopad. In reality, there was nothing that interesting, just a bunch of 1,000 page journals and a few advertisements for remedies and other things from Kiamac that had made it into the black market. Nothing was helping him, if he was honest. All the culture studies were all directed at the century old civilizations of Kiamac, when the empire had been extensive through the entire system they were currently stopping in, a few millennia ago. Nothing about the anatomy or anything that had to do with the Kiamians themselves, at least in recent years, all just scientific explanations to the mystery miracle past that was supposedly harvested from the very colorful trees that dominated most of Kiamac's landscape. He wasn't interested in skin care at the moment, and learning about the thermal layers of the planet was not something that a paladin really needed to know.

He was about to put it down and try a new tactic when the door of the commons room opened, and out stepped Lance, skin shining, using a towel to dry his dripping hair. He glanced around the room for a moment before his sea blue eyes landed on Keith, and an expression of confusion washed over his face before he had time to recompose himself. "Oh, hey Keith." Lance said, before moving towards his door. Clearly he didn't want to talk right now, but Keith couldn't help but to stop him. "Lance." The red paladin turned, eyebrow raised as Keith motioned with his head to the spot next to him. "I need your help with something."

"O-oh." Keith happened to notice a tiny blush that crossed over Lance's face. "Um, okay!" The red paladin changed directions, plopping down on the couch next to him. Keith showed him the holopad. "I've been looking for any information on the Kiamac people." Keith explained as Lance swiped down the page.

Lance smiled, which was something Keith almost never saw anymore. Lance was always smiling at Allura and fawning over her, but rarely showed any emotions around the group anymore. Especially since they left Earth. He'd been especially quiet since they left Earth. "I see. You're doing this for Ayla, right?"

Keith suddenly sat up board straight, surprised that Lance had been able to read him so well. "Yeah… how did you know?" Lance shrugged. "Just an assumption. Not many people who swing swords at holograms sit down for research for three hours." Lance set the holopad down on the couch. "I don't know man. The only person who might know about this is probably Matt. He's been all over the galaxy."

A sinking feeling suddenly began to form in the pit of Keith's stomach. "Um, I already asked him."

"Oh." Lance glanced down at the holopad again, before looking back up at Keith. "So, why exactly do you need my help?" He asked, looking skeptical. He had all rights to look that way. Keith was apparently very cryptic sometimes. Keith rubbed the back of his neck, embarrassed. "I don't know. I just thought that maybe.. We could work together? Like old times?" _Like before you started dating Allura? _"Ayla likes you a lot, so I thought we could, you know, help Shiro out a little?" It seemed like a pathetic reason out loud, but Keith couldn't come up with anything better. Lance set the towel down, the smile returning to his face. "Sure, I guess. Wanna go see how she's doing then?" Lance stood up, extending a hand to Keith.

"Yeah." Keith took his hand, letting the red paladin pull him up off the couch. "Yeah, sounds like a good idea."

…

Ayla wasn't used to this place. Shiro, as most people called him, also her new dad, was going out of his way to make her feel comfortable, from getting her some new clothes to a small snack, which was called a "strawberry". Whatever it was, the little red fruit was amazingly delicious, the sweet flavors exploding as they touched her tongue. It was hard not to stuff lots of them into her mouth at once, they were so good. Shiro just watched her eat with a content look on his face, the soft smile and slight wrinkles around the edges of his eyes reminding her of her mother's face before she'd left.

A sudden gloom seemed to come over her as she stopped eating, thinking about her mother. Everything was gone now. It seemed like just yesterday she was bringing laundry down to the river, humming her favorite song, even though it had been only a week since the attack. Ayla felt something inside suddenly feel cold, and she wasn't hungry all the sudden. She couldn't stop seeing her mother's eyes now, cold and lifeless in the ruins of the village. She didn't know how to feel. Sad, sure. Numb, probably. Her throat felt choked up as she looked down at the ripe red fruit on the napkin. The village was gone. Her life before this accident was gone. Her mother wouldn't ever smile at her again. Ayla was barely aware of tears beginning to slide down her cheeks as she continued to look down.

"Ayla?" Shiro looked at her, mild concern written in his features. "Ayla, what's wrong?" He asked, more urgently. Ayla tried to hold back sobs, her shoulders shaking as her lips pursed. Shiro got up from his spot at the table across from her, walking over to sit by her. "Hey, it's alright." He said kindly as he sat down, placing a hand on her back. For a brief moment, Ayla wanted to run, run so the memories couldn't catch her, but in a moment of weakness, she wrapped her arms around Shiro, burying her face in his side. Shiro made a little _oof _noise, resting a hand on the back of her head. "Hey…. it's okay." he said, his tone slightly strained, but remaining the same calm, reassuring voice he'd used for the past few hours. Ayla finally let her tears out, sobbing as the reality came crashing down. She was never going to see anyone she knew ever again.

Keith and Lance stopped in front of Shiro's door, not knowing what to expect. Keith had heard from the bridge crew that Shiro had taken Ayla to his room, probably to let her take a nap. Keith wasn't sure how much of that was true, but there was no harm in checking. He knocked, waiting for a long moment before Shiro's sleepy voice said: "Come in.." Keith placed his hand on the holoscanner outside the door, before it clicked open with a _beep. _

Shiro laid on the couch of the common's room, Ayla's tiny, scrawny form covered in a blue blanket that was spread over the two of them. The girl's hair was so white, for a moment Keith almost mistook it as a part of Shiro's tank top, but he quickly realized that she was practically glued to him, tiny hand clutching the fabric of his shirt. Shiro smiled, glancing down at Ayla before lifting his robotic hand to wave. "Sorry I couldn't answer the door." He yawned, stretching out a little more, earning a little groan as Ayla's tiny fist wrapped tighter around his shirt, trying to pull him closer. "I'm a bit pinned at the moment."

Lance laughed, standing awkwardly in the doorway as Keith walked in, making himself at home in one of the smaller couches off to the side. Lance took the chair by the door, seemingly uncomfortable as Keith watched him for a moment before speaking. "So, how's she doing?"

"Oh, you know, she's been fine for the most part." Shiro responded, smoothing back his snow white hair with his free hand. "Except for her breakdown earlier, she's been sleeping for most of the time."

"Breakdown?" He asked, speaking for both of them. Keith knew that many of the refugees usually began to cry and thank the paladins and the Atlas crew members over and over again, but the breakdown prospect was quite new, in a sense. The poor girl had probably been alone for quite a while, it seemed, given how beat up she looked when they first found her, but had appeared to be fine when they were back in the hangar. Shiro nodded, gently brushing some of her fair hair out of her face. "Yeah. She started crying in the middle of having a snack, and just kind of… cried herself to sleep." He explained.

Keith thought for a moment. "Any idea what it was all about?"

"No, it just happened. One minute she was eating strawberries, perfectly content, the next she was bawling her eyes out." Keith felt a pang of sympathy. Ayla had been through hell and back, with no one to help her through. At least they'd found her when they did. Any longer and the damage might've been much worse. "I think she just needs to cry it out. Kids at this age can't comprehend what's going on when things like this happen, and need to have someone to hold on to."

Lance nodded. "Poor kid." He said, his voice hardly a murmur. His blue eyes were dim once again, like when they'd been in the destroyed village.

Ayla stirred a little, maybe sensing they were talking about her, wiggling for a second and going back to her asleep state. Keith couldn't help but to smile. She was cute, even though she had a traumatic past. In a way, she looked like a miniature version of Shiro, just with bigger eyes and much shorter. She could probably pass as his actual daughter if she wanted to. Keith sat back in the chair, drumming his fingers on the arm rest. "So, Shiro. What's the whole thing with Curtis going all red whenever we mention you?" Lance said, a coy smile spreading over his face as he changed the subject.

Shiro looked mildly confused, his eyebrows raised. "Curtis? You mean Lieutenant Williams, right?" Lance nodded intently, oddly interested in this new development. Keith watched the exchange, feeling almost like he wasn't there. Although he'd heard of Williams, Keith had never met him. "I have no clue. He's just the communications officer. I haven't spoken to him outside of work."

"Hmm. Well, anyways, I promised Hunk that I'd help him with a new recipe he's making, so I better go." Lance said, clearly unsatisfied as he got up. "Let me know if something comes up." Lance said, sounding rushed as he walked over to the door, the panel sliding open to let him leave. Keith glanced over at Shiro, who was toying with one of the stray hairs of Ayla's hair as the door slid closed again.

"I think there's something you should know." Keith said in the moment of silence after the red paladin had left. Shiro glanced over at him, brows knitted together. "I mean, about when we found Ayla."

"Yeah?" Shiro tried to shift into a more comfortable position. Keith hated to weigh the man that had been practically his brother with such heavy information, but he had to get it off his chest sometime.

"There's something wrong. When we were going down to the surface, there was some kind of facility on the planet. Galra, according to Pidge's scans. We believe that the galra must've had control over the planet, in order for the locals to not interfere with those operations. But what doesn't make sense is why they fired on the very people who served them!" Frustration and anger boiled in Keith's core as his voice rose in volume. "Why be a ruler when you have no subjects? It just doesn't make any sense!"

Shiro's gray eyes went cold all of the sudden. "I don't know, but we're not going to talk about this, Keith. What's done is done, and there's nothing we can do about it."

"Then what are we going to do? Stand by while they continue to hurt people, while Honerva is planning something secret behind our backs?" Keith stood up, unable to contain his outrage and fury any longer. Sure, Shiro was his senior, but seeing the captain turn a blind eye to this event was just… infuriating! "I'm not just going to sit here while you let them kill more people! We can't be this naive and not fight back!"

"No Keith. We're going to fight back. This accident is a lesson. If we're going to make a move, we're going to make it now, while Honerva think's we're distracted." Shiro sighed. "I have no doubt she has a hand in this somehow, but we're not going to be fooled." Shiro looked up at Keith, determination making his eyes hard and cold. "Don't think I'm turning my back on you, Keith." Shiro gently lifted Ayla off him, stepping over her curled up form as he walked over to where Keith was standing. "I'm not turning my back on you, or anybody. You just have to learn patience."

Keith nodded, groaning since he'd heard the same lecture before, over and over. "I know, Shiro. Patience yields focus!" He said, waving his arms. Shiro laughed a little, the intense mood gone in an instant. "Yeah. Now give me a hug!"

Keith knew that he looked like a panicked rabbit the second Shiro said that. "Shirooo… No!" Keith tried to fight the bigger man off, with not much success and Shiro caught him up in a hug and squeezed him tight enough to probably pop some joints. "Come onnn…" Keith whined, struggling in vain. Shiro wasn't having it, tightening his grip so Keith had literally no way to escape. "Shiro!"

"Fine, fine. You're no fun."

Keith made a valiant dash towards the door once he was free, before looking back with a smile. "Thanks, Shiro." He said. He really did mean it. His brother did have a way of cheering people up with just a smile and a few words.

Shiro just waved him off. "Go on. You know you don't have to thank me for anything."

"Yeah. See you later!"

Keith left the room, leaving Shiro standing in the middle of the carpeted floor. Shiro heard a little grumble as Ayla sat up on the couch, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. "Daddy?" She said, still sounding half asleep.

"I'm right here, sunshine."

Note: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! FLUFF! This was so fun to write, I almost started laughing on the spot when Shiro went all hugs mode. But anyways, hopefully this was another satisfactory chapter, and a shout out to the person who gave me the suggestion to write more klance (which was in the plan, don't worry)! But from this point on, I might not be editing as well, so let me know if I make any errors!

P.S.: The cover art is by me! ;3


	4. Chapter 3

Autophobia

au· to· pho· bia | \ ˌȯt-ə-ˈfō-bē-ə \

morbid fear of solitude

-Merriam-Webster Dictionary

Chapter Four- Alone

"Scan complete." The man's voice warped through the glass as Ayla stood in a small pod in the corner of the infirmary. Through the blue glass, Ayla could see Shiro standing on the other side, looking at the small pop-up screen that displayed the results of the scan, his white hair looking almost silver under the intense lights. It had been a few days since he'd taken Ayla as his responsibility, and during that time, most of it was Ayla sleeping or being fawned over by crew members. Her favorite as of yet was Veronica, who'd let Ayla sit in her seat on the bridge and press all the buttons she wanted. Hint: That did not go well. Shiro had caught them, mostly because all the alarms had gone off at full volume and the fire extinguishing foam had sprayed everywhere. Ayla had taken the blame, and in turn, she was essentially worshipped by some of the crew members for going against standard protocol. But besides that incident, they'd wormholed to another, more peaceful part of the galaxy, where they met up with the rest of the rebels whom they were allied with. Ayla knew enough to say that they were a very mixed bunch, from humans to taujeerian alike.

That wasn't even the best part. Being Shiro's responsibility was usually boring, but not when you got to meet Coran, an ancient Altean who would tell hundreds of stories about old Altea, if you were willing to listen. As a matter of fact, he was the one outside what he called a "cryo-pod" right now, talking to Shiro about something the scan had picked up. They were both huddled around the tablet that it was being displayed on, murmuring in low voices that Ayla could hardly hear. "Papa?" She asked, placing her hands against the pristine glass. Shiro ignored her, continuing to talk with Coran. Hmph. Ayla sighed, peeling her hands away and folded them across her chest. She really did hate being ignored.

"What should we do?" Shiro asked, a little louder. Ayla tapped her foot, not liking being trapped in the glass tube one bit. "If the galra are tracking her, we could be in a bad situation if we don't get it taken care of."

Coran shrugged. "I cannot say. You're the captain, Shiro. You make the choice."

Shiro seemed to be indecisive for a moment. "Let's just see how it goes then." He said simply, before turning back to the pod. "Ayla, you ready to come out yet?" He asked with a teasing smile. 

"Yes!" She said, making a pinched up face at him. "It's too stuffy in here!"

He sighed, before pressing the release button on the small screen. With the sound of steam hissing, the glass vanished, almost like magic. Maybe.. It was magic! Ayla eyed the pod suspiciously as she climbed out, earning a chuckled from Shiro. "So?" She asked once she was standing in front of the two. "What did it say?"

Coran glanced at Shiro for a split second, before the captain smiled warmly. "Nothing to worry about. We're just going to make a little side trip just for you, okay?"

"Okay!" Ayla beamed, before sticking her arms out, making little grabby hands. "Can I have shoulders, please?" She chirped, her voice perky. Shiro nodded. "Well I can't really say no to such a polite little lady…"

She grinned. "Thank you!" She said brightly, climbing over Shiro's head with little difficulty, sitting right between his shoulder blades. As he stood up, the ground was further and further away, until she could almost brush her hands against the ceiling. "Bye-bye, Coran!" She exclaimed over her shoulder as Shiro waved, heading for the exit.

* * *

"Set course for Olkarion." Ayla followed closely behind him as Captain Shirogane entered the bridge of the IGF Atlas. The time was currently 13: 53 hours, and he didn't have a moment to waste. The results of the scan presented some concerning facts, including the tiny microchip embedded in Ayla's arm, which the tissue had grown around. In order to remove it, they would have to do surgery, which if not done right, could lead to Ayla losing her arm completely. On the scan the muscle appeared to be tightly wound around it, almost as if it had grown around the chip as she aged. It was impossible how long the chip had been there, but Coran's guess had been around three or four years, in the time when Ayla was growing at a nearly constant rate. Neither of them were medical geniuses, however, but the medic on board said it was strategically placed in Ayla's left arm. Right next to the bone, the medic pointed out, so risking trying to remove it could possibly go beyond muscle and nerve damage.

That wasn't even near the end of it. Another concerning fact was that Ayla's body didn't match the supposed physical model for the Kiamian species. First off, she had two hearts, both small enough to fit between her lungs, but more powerful than three human hearts together. Not to mention that her lungs were designed to stretch, for reasons unknown, but if only one of her systems alone was that infinitely valuable, medics on Earth would have been lining up to get their hands on her. To a similar extent, her bone structure was similar to a humans, just twice as strong, with a few added parts that they had yet to understand. In a nutshell, she was like a genetically advanced human. Her DNA didn't even match the general map that Kiamian's had besides the eyes, which the data deducted were designed to adjust almost instantaneously to any light conditions. But the Atlas was limited in what it could test and read from a scan. Most of her functions were unknown, and it would stay that way until they got somewhere that had the technology to figure her out. In this case, that was Olkarion.

In the background clamor, the crew ran a systems check, bouncing back and forth across the room. Boosters, networks, gravity, stabilizers. "Captain, we're ready." Veronica turned around in her chair, pushing her glasses up on her nose.

"Great. Get me a line to Allura." Lieutenant Williams pressed a button on his console, the line opening on the captain's screen. "Allura, we're ready."

"Yes sir. Standing by."

Shiro looked back at Ayla. "Ready?" 

"Yeah!" She'd been quiet throughout the whole procedure, her blue eyes wide with anticipation. She was certainly polite, that was for sure. She skipped over to where he was standing, grabbing the sleeve of his uniform. "Where are we going?" 

There was a collective chuckle from the crew members as Shiro grinned. "Well, hopefully where we want to go." He turned back to the line that was still open to Allura. "Alright, punch it."

Shiro watched as a swirling portal appeared in front of the Atlas, and the stars turned into a swirling blue tunnel. As per usual, the crew gasped, watching the blue currents of light pass on either side of them. "Wow… so pretty.." Ayla seemed to be in a trance as her eyes followed the path of light, wide with wonder. Shiro had seen this hundreds of times before, and yet it still managed to amaze him.

Suddenly, another portal opened on the other side of the quantum tunnel and the Atlas emerged from the lights had ended almost as soon as they had begun, and now they floated in front of Olkarion, which glowed with its green vegetation. "Welcome to Olkarion, everybody." Shiro said, opening a line to the Atlas.

"This is your captain speaking. We've successfully reached Olkarion, and are approaching the planet now. Initiate all landing protocols and prepare for descent."

Ayla was practically bouncing on her heels as she pulled on Shiro's arm. "Can we go now? Please, please, please?"

Shiro glanced back at the crew. "In a minute. I have to make sure everything goes according to plan, okay?"

Ayla looked mildly disappointed, her bottom lip sticking out. "But I wanna go nooow…" She groaned, pouting. Shiro made a mental note to cross polite off the list of words he would use to describe her, and replace it with impatient.

"Ayla, I can't just leave. If something goes wrong, who's going to fix it? I don't think Lieutenant Williams can control the chaos of an emergency landing, if that were to happen while I was away." He glanced over at Williams, who looked as if someone had slapped him. "No offence." Shiro quickly added, before turning back to Ayla.

Ayla looked like any five year old in that situation, glowering at Shiro with a glare that made him feel a little guilty. "Here, how about this. Why don't you go see what Keith's doing? I'll come get you when we've landed."

Ayla hesitantly nodded, heading to the door. Once she was gone, Shiro let out a breath he didn't know he'd even been holding. Why was handling a child so hard? He understood that Ayla was only five, but he hadn't expected that to go the way it did. He may have also offended one of the only crew members he actually depended on daily in the process. That would come back to bite him in the butt, and he knew it. Turning back to the crew, he cleared his throat. "Coran, bring us in." He said, his calm, unreadable demeanor returning. "Let Ryner know that we're coming in.." He paused for a moment, debating on whether to tell the Olkari about the reason for their sudden visit. Ryner was trustworthy. At least, that's what Kuron's memories implied. "And tell her that we have a special passenger."

* * *

Ayla was alone. No one wandered the halls, no one came in and out of the rooms. She made the only sound in the deserted halls, trying to remember where Keith's room was. She'd been there during the week to visit, but never on her own. The Atlas was so large, she could hardly even remember where Shiro's room was. The white walls gave the illusion that she was safe and protected, but the creeping feeling of someone watching her was almost too much for her small brain to process. She whirled around again, expecting to see yellow eyes and the leering mouth of her pursuers, but instead she was met with the empty halls once again.

For a moment, she considered going back to the safety at Shiro's side, but couldn't remember how to get back to the bridge. Which direction was it? Left or right? Was it a floor above, or below? She couldn't remember the direction she came from even. All the halls looked the same on the Atlas, the boring white and gray. "Hello?" She murmured, almost expecting to hear Shiro say something behind her, maybe even ask where she'd been for the past half an hour. The floor shook under her as the Atlas hit turbulence, and Ayla staggered towards the wall. Where was she? She continued forwards, hoping she would find something that would give her a hint as to where she was, but nothing appeared. No mysterious otherworldly clue, no crazy flashing sign that said turn here. Just the same doors with endless numbers counting indefinitely.

Suddenly, cold seemed to seep into the pores on her back. Ayla wrapped her arms around herself, a shiver running down her spine as her throat closed up. She was about to say something, but it came out as a squeak, and her stomach clenched as another chill washed over her. The creeping feeling of someone watching her prickled down her spine as she turned around again, expecting to see someone following her, or anything. Just an empty hall, brightly illuminated. What was going on? She felt the urge to run, maybe even curl up so they couldn't hurt her. "Hello..?"

She continued walking, her legs feeling stiff as she stopped in front of an archway. There was no label, and it was frighteningly dark inside, but a tug in the back of her mind told her to move forwards, to enter the darkness. Ayla took a deep breath, as deep as she could at the moment, and stepped into the dark room with her eyes closed. She opened her eye a crack, expecting there to be a blaster inches from her throat, or maybe even something looming in the dark, but there was nothing. Just the glow of something in another room coming off this one. She crept further into the dark, glancing around nervously. She probably wasn't supposed to be back here, but something was urging her on, telling her to wander deeper into the dark. She tiptoed around the corner, the faint blue light illuminating her pale face as her legs shook. She stood in the center of a large room where there was a large container near the back wall. A black and blood red object floated around in lazy circles inside, twitching occasionally. Four tiny claws came out of it as Ayla hesitantly stepped closer to investigate, her legs practically hurting from being so tense.

"Hello?" She looked around, only to realize that the pod was the only thing in the room. She could hear a faint hiss, but there was nothing to create such a noise. "Is anyone here..?" Her voice was tiny as she watched the long shadows closely, half expecting one to jump at her. She could hardly tear her gaze away from the pod as she inched even closer, her nose maybe a foot from the blue glass. "Guess not." She whispered to herself, unease still eating at her stomach. "What're you?"

No response. The object just kept floating in random circles, pulsing with red light. Ayla placed a hand on the glass, getting up on her toes to see better. The little object seemed to be alive, and had a faint black trail as it jerked towards her. She scrambled back, uttering a single scream as it twitched closer to the glass. The hissing got louder, until it seemed to be coming from all directions, surrounding her completely. Ayla could only stare in sheer terror as the tiny creature began to spasm, its movements erratic. "Aaaayla…" It hissed, or whoever was hissing at her. "Aaaaaaaayla… come backkk…"

A scream caught in her throat as a hunched over shadow suddenly came forwards out of the corner of the room, claws clear as day in the pale light of the container. "Aaaaayla…."

A scream ripped itself from Ayla's throat. Deep seated terror of this thing suddenly emerged, her body shaking as it hobbled towards her, yellow eyes slits as Ayla scrambled away from it, clawing at the floor. "N-no… Stay a-away…" Her voice shook as her back hit the wall, blind terror begging to be free. "Please… d-don't hurt.."

She choked on her words, petrified with nowhere to go. The shadow towered over her as her nails dug into the wall, drawing blood. "Aaaaaaaayla… return tooooo….. Meeee…."

Ayla could hardly breathe. "...No…" Her cheeks were wet as she buried her face in her hands. She curled her knees to her chest, a sob building in her throat. "NO!"

Note:

Shiro: Sorry Curtis, but I really don't trust you.

Curtis: *with Darth Vader voice* Your lack of faith is disturbing..

*Gasp* Illegal cliffhanger! Sorry about not getting this out right away, I've had a hard past couple days and haven't found the time to finish this chapter. Ah, well. Hope this chapter lived up to your expectations and you enjoyed the beauty that is Ayla. Also, thank you to everyone who has left a review. These have really helped me along, and it's great to hear from you guys! Hasta luego, personas hermosas!


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter Four: Lost and Missing

Shiro stumbled, his body shaking with exhaustion. He couldn't bring his fuzzy mind to react as he was hit again, flying backwards and skidding on his raw back. The cheers from the bloodthirsty galra were all around him as the mindless arena beast towered over him, like one of the giants from the legends back on earth. The beast hefted it's metal club as it prepared to pulverize him. Shiro forced his aching body to roll out of the way as the club came down on the ground a short ways away, burying itself in the ground where his head was seconds ago. He was exhausted, dehydrated, and he wouldn't be pulling through this well if he wasn't pumped full of adrenaline. His tattered clothes were covered in holes, and blood stained some of the fresh wounds from this fight. He couldn't keep this up. Not for long. He would probably get hammered into the ground soon, but that was a future Shiro problem. Hopefully. Shiro managed to drag himself to his feet, limping away as the beast began to catch on, following him. The sand shook under his feet as the large shadow of his enemy loomed over him, prepared to pound him into oblivion.

Shiro picked up the pace, silently thanking Iverson for the backbreaking drills to get him in shape. He continued through the fog of his own mind, wincing as he tripped over his own ankle, falling in the sand. The galra laughed at him for good measure, the equivalent of rubbing salt in the wound. He was there for their entertainment only, so they could laugh at his own mistakes once his blood was smeared across the purple wall, and Matt was up next for the slaughter.

He couldn't… he couldn't continue this. Not here, not now.

But then something happened. Something wasn't supposed to be there, that shouldn't happen. The beast morphed into a deformed form covered in robes, glowing eyes focusing on him as the arena bled out around him, revealing a room full of glowing purple lights, and two galra standing over him. "Hold him steady. Don't want any accidents…" They both jeered, which was a horrid sound for his traumatized mind as he screamed, thrashing as they held him down. His arm was gone, replaced by cold metal as he mindlessly clawed at them, trying to escape-

"Captain Shirogane."

Panic gripped him as the cold fingers of fear tore down his back. Haggar- no, Honerva stood in the doorway of the room as the two galra retreated. Her white robes and hair gleamed in the faint light of the overhead lights, and her dark skin with deep red marks on her cheeks reminded him painfully of the witch who had taken his arm. Mind fuzzy and rooted deep with panic, he continued to thrash, struggling to sit up. "Captain Shirogane." The witch repeated, standing next to his bed. "You have something of mine."

"What do you…" He coughed hoarsely. "I... don't have anything of yours..."

"That's a lie." Honerva hissed, her hands gripping his face. It was suddenly too real, she was too close- too close- TOO CLOSE! Shiro grabbed her wrist, yanking her hand off his face. "Oh. Still fighting? Don't worry, it'll be over soon."

Shiro fell back, feeling nauseated as she stood over him, smirking. "Don't… don't…" He didn't know what he was saying, but the words tumbled out of his mouth anyways. "Don't…"

"Don't worry, Captain Shirogane. It'll all be over soon….."

...

He woke up with a tiny gasp. His robotic arm sat on the nightstand, powered down and faintly glowing in the dark as he groped at his chest, waiting for something to hurt. Nightmares were always there, lurking in the shadows when he closed his eyes, but this time it seemed… real. Too real to be just a nightmare or bit of PTSD. It wasn't even that bad, considering some of the dreams he had. Worse still, Ayla was nowhere to be found. Docking on Olkarion, he'd lost track of her, and she was still somewhere on this ship. He didn't even know if she was okay! If she wasn't… he would beat himself up over it, he was sure. Sighing, he made his way over to the in-room sink, splashing some of the slightly stale water, looking up at his reflection. The faint glow of his arm illuminated most of the room behind him, and brought to life the two dark circles under his eyes. Great.

Not to mention that his officers were bunking in the rooms around him, two to a room. His own was left without a bunkmate at his request, instead having someone bunk with Pidge and Matt near the paladin's quarters. Luckily his past self had thought forwards, given that he would feel bad if someone had to constantly wake up because of his nightmares. Flicking on the light, he tapped the clock awake. 2: 34 am, standard earth time. The garrison was supposed to be asleep at this time, even though they were all on board the Altas now. But they were on Olkarion now, so it seemed to be a bit later. Time to start the day either way.

Shiro sleepily gathered his uniform off the ground, throwing it in the cycle wash. Hopefully it would be done in time. Ayla was still missing. The thought kept coming back as soon as he tried to cover it up with something else. Yes, he was worried, but he couldn't let his routine suffer because there had been no luck finding her. He was sure one of the ground troops was still looking, given he hadn't called off the search.

The dream still chilled him. The dream that Honerva had starred in. Where she chillingly told him it would be over… soon enough. The thought sent him even more into panic as he struggled to keep his breathing right. What did that mean? Was he going to die, or worse? No, he couldn't do that to his crew. Or maybe she was about to attack them! No, that couldn't be right either, since the proximity alerts would have gone off on Olkarion by now.

Whatever was going on, he needed to get his mind off it.

Getting up with renewed vigor, he grabbed a plain gray t-shirt from his drawer and some sweatpants, pulling them on as he powered on his arm, the odd pulling sensation on his scarred stump making him relax. A familiar feeling, at least. From there, all he had to do was sneak down to the gym.

Sneaking down dark halls wasn't as easy as Keith always made it look, but Shiro was decently good at it. No one was really awake besides the work-a-holics or people who just didn't sleep, so he only had to dodge crew members twice on his way down. The creeping feeling he usually had in the dark was still there, tugging at his senses as he walked as fast as he could without making too much noise, the towel around his neck and water bottle in his hand going to be difficult to explain, should he come across someone he knew.

Luckily he didn't.

Once he got down to the lower floors, he yanked open the gym door, the clean but slightly smelly place just as he'd remembered. In his time aboard the Atlas, he'd barely gotten time to come down here, but now, with the lights on and all the equipment functional, it seemed like a dream come true!

There was someone there too, unfortunately. Out in the center of the room, as slender form stretched and occasionally stopped for water, chocolate brown hair and dark skin soaked in sweat. Black sweatpants covered a slim form, and a tank top revealed a pretty dissatisfying bit of muscle. They didn't see him come in, but would soon, he was sure. They also had headphones on, swaying to the music as they bent sideways, desperately trying to touch their toes. Awww… how cute. Wait. Shiro shook his head, going over to one of the treadmills. Even though they had gravity, the health experts in the med bay had said that exercise was a good idea, even if it was only for half an hour a day. Most people didn't listen, having too much work to do, but Shiro did do pushups for an hour every morning, sometimes in full regalia, just to get the blood flowing.

Turning the machine to medium fast, he began running, the three mile run showing on the screen. Ayla returned to his thoughts, not much of a helpful thought when he was trying to run. That girl… it wasn't her fault that the galra were merciless creatures, but she was also a burden to the crew. But at the same time, Shiro couldn't keep her off his mind for more than five minutes, unlike with the paladins. They were all almost adults. They could take care of themselves. Ayla… she could, but imagining what might've happened made his insides tie into knots he didn't need while commanding the Atlas.

"Captain Shirogane?" A strong, but not necessarily confident voice said from the other side of the room. "What are you doing up this early?"

_Smooth, honey toned voice. _Shiro's mind was so caught up in it for a moment that he tripped over his own feet, slamming down hard on the black belt of the treadmill. One moment, he was on the treadmill, the next, he was flying off the end, slamming down on the stiff mats of the floor. Head first, to his luck. The sound of something clattering to the ground was all his dazed mind could process as a pair of gray and orange shoes ran over, stopping a few feet away. "Captain! Shi- I mean, are you okay?"

"Yeah…" Shiro used his good arm, the robotic one, since his other flesh arm had taken the brunt of the impact, to push himself up. "Just dazed…" He swayed a little as a hand landed on his shoulder, steadying him. "I'm so sorry! I shouldn't have distracted you! Please forgive my ignorance!" Shiro blinked, suddenly looking into deep blue irises as a familiar face looked at him with panic firmly rooted in his features.

"...Williams?"

"Yes sir! That's me."

"Oh god… I should be the one apologizing." Shiro groaned, rubbing the side of his head as he looked down. Lieutenant Williams shook his head. "No, don't worry about what happened earlier, sir!"

That didn't help much. Shiro still felt guilty for what he said back on the command deck, and how offended and astonished Williams had looked when doubted by his captain. "No… I shouldn't have said what I did." Shiro let out a little groan. Everything had completely crashed and burned yesterday, and he didn't know how to put out the fire. First losing Ayla, then being looked after by the very crew member he insulted? He must be going crazy!

"Don't worry about it, sir. You were just trying to get a point across…" Williams reached out, stopping as Shiro flinched away. "Oh! Sorry… I just wanted to check your wound, sir. I have some medical training."

"Oh." Shiro sighed, exhaustion catching up to him. "Then do your best, doc." Williams frowned a little at the nickname, although he couldn't hide his embarrassed blush very well. Williams clearly wasn't very social, or just wasn't good at talking one-on-one with others. That was a shame, since Shiro would've known about all the harassment the lieutenant had gotten on the ship sooner. If not for Veronica, he wouldn't have known at all.

Williams reached out, his calloused hands gently probing Shiro's skull. One thing was for sure, that this wound was gonna cause a serious headache later. Williams pursed his lips. "It feels fine. Just a little bump, sir. If you want, I can take you down to the infirmary-"

"I'm fine." Shiro got to his feet slowly as he dared. His head was almost like a bowling ball, so he wasn't concerned about a concussion. What he was worried about was how much he seemed to have scared his communications officer. "Don't worry about me." He said, using his softer voice as he pulled Williams to his feet. "But why are you up so early, if you don't mind answering?"

Williams blushed in embarrassment again, rubbing the back of his neck uncomfortably. "Um, well, I've been told that I should maybe exercise more, maybe get stronger? It would be nice if I could run a few miles when we get back." _If we get back. _Williams also sounded slightly sad as he said it, looking down. Shiro had never known Williams to be in the extroverted part of the crew, since he mostly hung back and did work while everyone else decided to test Hunk's creations, or get some snacks and talk. Instead, Williams worked most of the time, bringing in messages and pinpointing their next salvage from Honerva.

He was also easy to overlook, which made Shiro feel slightly guilty. Adam… Adam didn't let himself get overlooked. _He's dead. _It didn't matter. _It won't bring him back though. _Shiro shook his head to clear his thoughts. "That would be nice. Maybe you could carry my old sack of bones if you work hard enough.

Williams blushed again, this time not from embarrassment. "I could try, sir."

"That's the spirit. I'll leave so you can train some more."

"Yes sir!" Williams saluted as Shiro waved it off. "Don't worry about saluting me. We're all just trying to get by, no need for formalities."

"Yes sir! And I hope you find Ayla soon."

Shiro froze, his shoulders sinking a little. "Yeah, I hope so too."

…

She was hungry, tired, and cold when she woke up. Ayla didn't remember where she'd taken a wrong turn, but she was laying in a strange room, a cute little red thing floating around in a pod on the other side of the room. Was the scary lady just a dream? Or was she waiting to put her claws down on Ayla's neck? Ayla scrambled to her feet before she had a chance to find out, while her almost transparent skin glowed faintly in the dark. She couldn't see in the dark! Feeling her way across the wall, she only found a corner.

"Shiro?" She called out, voice cracking as panic set in. Her voice was hardly a squeak as she struggled to breath. "Shiro!"

No answer.

Note: I'M ALIVE! SOMEHOW!

Hi everyone! Sorry for the lack of updates. With electronic school kicking my butt and a relative crazy summer with the pandemic going on, I actually forgot about this story for a while, and when I remembered... two months have gone by! But here it is, the answer to several pleas! Thank you to all who have followed me or my stories, since it really means a lot to have someone cheering me on! As usual, please leave a review and tell me what you think!

I also have a Wattpad account if you want to check it out! My username is Freshpugg, if you're interested.

Anyways, stay safe, and see you next time!


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter Five: Found

It was cold. The room was dark. She was alone. Ayla laid on the floor, watching the red thing drift around in its prison as she waited. Shiro _would _come. He had to. If he didn't…

Her stomach growled, interrupting her thoughts. She was hungry now? Oh no… A small whine escaped her throat as she tried to push herself up, scraped knees brushing against the floor with small flashes of pain. Why was it so familiar? She'd been in this situation before, she just couldn't remember… when? A faint blur of memory came back as she looked down. Her mother, handing her the gun and telling her to stay there. Where "there" was didn't have any specifics, she realized. All she could remember was walking through the village, the corpses of two galra guards behind her. She shot them. Her hands shook as she held the gun, waiting for another one of the purple and hideous aliens to burst out of the foliage and attack her.

_No. Think happy thoughts. _She blinked hard, her vision misty. Mommy… she didn't come back. A soft sob escaped from her throat at the thought, her knees curling to her chest naturally. Most Kiamians had a defense mechanism, a set of wings that folded into their backs, that could unfurl and hit a bad guy at full force… but she didn't have any. Now that she thought about it, she didn't have any of the odd appendages that her species had. Her mother only had giant brown wings that she kept hidden, but other villagers usually had antennas, horns, or something else. Ayla remembered the feeling of soft feathers tickling her face, and the nice bubble of warmth her mother's wings created. It was safe. It was home.

Not anymore.

"Shiro…" She faintly whimpered, reminded immediately of the captain's face. He looked so much like her as well… white hair, grey eyes, pale skin. Not to mention that his voice was full and proud, not afraid to let people hear his roar. She wished she could be that brave. Not that she was…

"Aylaaaaaaaa…" The faint sound of someone calling her voice came from somewhere nearby just as she was about to slump back down onto the floor. Standing up on wobbly legs, the call came again, closer. "Aylaaaaa?"

"Here!" She cried, hoping whoever was calling her could hear her. "I'M HERE!" She shouted even louder, voice shrill.

There was a sudden commotion, and the pounding of feet. "It came from in here!" Someone cried, a faint light suddenly cast on the wall of a... hallway? How had she not noticed? She was about to say something when the light suddenly shone right in her eyes. With a small gasp, she covered her sensitive eyes, the sound of more people entering the room filling her small ears. "Ayla! You're okay!" A boy with long, rust colored hair and kind eyes grinned at her, dropping his flashlight. Ayla blinked furiously, trying to keep the relief from flooding out of her eyes, with little success. "Yeah…" She whispered, voice watery.

"I'm so glad we found you! Is this where you've been?" The boy lunged forwards, throwing his arms around her. She faintly nodded as he ran a hand over her hair, her face buried in his oil and mechanical smelling shirt. "Oh god. I'm so sorry! It must've been-"

"Ayla…"

A jolt went through her chest as a familiar voice rang through the room. Shiro! Ayla immediately untangled herself from the boy with the rust colored hair, pushing him away as she ran towards Shiro. "SHIRO!" She cried, immediately latching onto his legs. More tears began to flow as she felt a smooth robotic arm on her back, and the other wrap around her gently. "Ayla!" The captain sounded relieved as he looked down at her. "I…" Shiro seemed to be at a loss for words as he brought his hands up to his face, eyes shining in the faint light of the room. Ayla let out a watery laugh as the captain slumped down to the floor, grinning like a madman. "You're okay…" He murmured, a few silver streams running down his cheeks.

The boy with the rust colored hair laughed, walking over to put a hand on Shiro's shoulder. "Hey, captain! Don't go weak on us now!"

Shiro shook his head. "If I'm going to cry, let me go down like a man, Matt!" He whispered hoarsely. "Don't you agree, Ayla?"

"Yeah." Ayla smiled, hugging the captain. Well, he wasn't just the captain to her, but he should go down like a man, as he said. "Let daddy cry if he wants to." She stuck her tongue out at Matt, who glared at her.

"Smart little shi- I mean crap!" Shiro's teary glare made Matt take a step back. "We should probably go get you hosed off though, Ayla! You've been in here for about 36 hours now…" He quickly changed the subject, as Shiro gently lifted Ayla into his arms, her arms firmly grabbing onto his shirt.

Ayla nodded, grip tightening around Shiro. She couldn't even wrap her arms all the way around his chest, now that she noticed it. Even though he could probably bench press her, that was how small she was. "Yeah." Shiro wiped his eyes on his sleeve. "That's probably a good idea."

…

"Ayla!" Shiro wasn't expecting a surprise visit from Lieutenant Williams. It did make sense though, given his worry from earlier in the day, but Williams had caught him right in the middle of teaching Ayla how to make an ice cream sundae, which was very unmanly. If word of this got out, it would probably be the end of his sturdy control over the crew. _Captain Shirogane caught dead in a pink tank top and tights, loses respect from crew. _The headline practically flashed in front of Shiro's eyes as Lieutenant Williams looked him down, cheeks and ears faintly red. "And, um… Captain!" Williams quickly looked away. "Sorry if I came in at a bad time!" His cheeks flushed deeper as Ayla smiled.

"It's okay! We were making sundaes! Wanna help?" She held out the ice cream scooper, and Shiro was barely seconds too late to stop her. _I'm dead. _He fluffed his poof of hair out of his eyes as he gave Williams a strained smile. "Yeah, you can join us… _if you want._" He hoped his tone was threatening enough. Williams just smiled widely, his perfect teeth and shiny skin reminding Shiro painfully of Adam.

"I think I'll have to take you up on that." He said kindly, ruffling Ayla's hair enthusiastically. "Just call me Curtis, if you want." He added, answering Ayla's unspoken question without a moment's hesitation.

In the meantime, Shiro dug his own ice cream scoop into the container aggressively, digging out a large piece and letting it fall into a metal bowl. Curtis stood beside him, Ayla chatting happily about the neapolitan ice cream she was so fond of. The dark skinned man shared her enthusiasm, not even faltering for a second, unlike Shiro, who was exhausted just from trying to keep up for a few minutes. _They're cute together-_

"Don't you agree, Shir- I mean, captain?" Curtis' warm voice snapped him out of his thoughts, clear blue eyes locked on him with a soft intensity. How that was possible, Shiro had no clue, but he simply nodded. "Yeah, yeah.." Ayla stuck out her bottom lip, pouting a little.

"You didn't mean it!"

"Yes I did, don't be silly!"

"You're a bad liar."

Both men glanced over at her, with similar looks of shock. "What?" Ayla looked between them, large eyes innocent. Oh gosh, why were her eyes so innocent? Why weren't they broken? The questions that Shiro usually kept under wraps emerged as she wrung her hands, looking slightly uncomfortable. "Did I say something wrong?" Her voice sounded scared for a moment as Shiro quickly rebounded out of his shock, brushing past Curtis.

Their hands brushed.

Shiro's ears heated up in embarrassment, or that other fluttery feeling that he'd felt earlier as he knelt in front of Ayla. "No! You didn't do anything wrong, Ayla!" He gently untwined her hands, getting her to meet his eyes. "You can't just say that to people, though…"

Ayla nodded, even though she was clearly confused. "O-okay…" She whispered, looking down.

Curtis cleared his throat awkwardly. "Yeah, you're fine, Ayla! Besides, this ice cream isn't- uh- gonna eat itself, you know?"

Ayla's expression immediately brightened. "Right!" She pulled away from Shiro, running over to Curtis, trying to see what he was doing. "Make sure you put extra strawberries on mine!" She exclaimed as he pulled him from a sealed bag. They had plenty of food from Earth, hence the ice cream, and Hunk had experimented plenty with the whole "keeping milk and dairy good for a while in space" idea.

Speaking of, Shiro glanced back at the hall. They were hiding out in the kitchen, but most of the crew was on duty, so only Curtis had come down, probably having seen the security feed. Wait. Veronica had seen them too then! Shiro internally panicked, struggling to stay calm. His internal self was much different from his outside self. Outside Shiro had authority, was confident, and was every girl's dream. Internal Shiro could be described in two words:

Gay disaster. Or just a disaster altogether.

The internally screaming and constantly going after guys part of him that couldn't shut up for a few seconds. "MMM!" His thoughts were once again interrupted by Ayla, who was chomping down on a bit of ice cream. "If melf on you' mouth!" She exclaimed, delighted by the strange flavors.

Shiro nodded, glancing out the door one more time. "That's ice cream for you." Ayla eagerly nodded, choking down on one of the strawberries that she'd meticulously placed on top. "Try it!" She said to Curtis, scooping some pink ice cream off the top. She held it out as Williams bent down, opening his mouth. The corners of his eyes wrinkled up a little as he smiled a little, bitting down on the spoon. He sat there for a moment, thoughtfully chewing until he looked up, grinning. "Wow. It's actually decent. You should try some, Shiro- I mean, captain!"

"Alright then."

"Open up!" Ayla offered him another scoop, a little bit of ice cream on the corner of her lip.

"Woah woah! Don't use the same spoon, silly!" Shiro pushed it away before it could be shoved, in his mouth, eyes wide.

Ayla blinked, clearly confused. "Why not?"

"It's not sanitary, Ayla. I don't want Williams' germs, no offence."

"None taken."

"Ooooh. Get another spoon then!"

"Gimme a second, you crazy cuddle bug! It's not like it's going to vanish!"

"Come onnnnn!"

"Shoot! You won't give me a second, will you?"

…

Shiro sighed, falling back on the couch. He was exhausted. After Ayla had a whole bowl of ice cream, she was pretty much on a sugar high for the rest of the afternoon. So much for the trip to see Ryner. He and Curtis had spent the first hour chasing her around and playing a game of hide and seek that wasn't in either of their job descriptions, while the other hour or two was spent trying to get her to sit down or try to nap. Unfortunately, Kiamians seemed to react to sugar rather violently, since Ayla could hardly keep her foot from tapping every few seconds.

Then she crashed. Silence had never felt so good, especially since he'd only had her for about a week or so, and was already regretting his decision to become an early parent. Sure, he was already approaching his late twenties, but this was not his idea of parenting. He had the idea of a nice, quiet kid, where he didn't have to do much besides lecture them occasionally, play with them when he got home from work, and teach them basic skills. He didn't expect a stubborn alien child that had an insatiable thirst for adventure and making him worry. Not at all. If he'd gone back in time and asked pre- Ayla Shiro what he thought of having another space child to mentor, he would've been hyped and wanted it entirely. Now, not so much.

So much for peace and quiet. He probably wouldn't get any sleep that night.

Note: Oh no, it's a filler!

I'm back! This one happens to a pretty short and a bit of a filler chapter, but the excitement is about to begin! Don't worry, Honerva's going to pop up soon enough everybody. And Ayla is about to suffer more-my poor baby :'(, because I can't let my characters have one moment of peace.

But anyways, hopefully I can get the next chapter out soon! Yeah! Please leave a review, because it really helps me along in getting these out... and if you're really ambitious, come check out my Wattpad! My username is Freshpugg if you wanna drop by and read the rest of my crazy trash!

Stay safe and see you in the next week or so!


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter Six: Small Problem

"Ayla, wake up… we have to go visit someone today."

Ayla groaned, rolling over in the bed as someone ruffled her snow colored hair. No… she didn't want to get up. The light was too bright… The hand moved to her shoulder, shaking her insistently. "Ayla, come on. Don't ignore me…" Shiro's voice was soft and gentle as she groaned again, pulling the blanket over her face.

"No, don't wanna."

"Ayla… Please. We don't want to keep them waiting, trust me." Ayla opened one sleepy eye, giving him the benefit of doubt. She hadn't had any dreams last night, oddly enough, and no memories woke her up in the middle of the night. She was still shaken from the scary monster that had appeared in that room, the hissing of her name rotating constantly in her thoughts. How did they know? Who were they? She was the slightest hit curious as Shiro smiled down at her. "Oh, there you are. Good morning, cuddle bug."

"'Morning…" She muttered, rubbing her eyes. Another long day ahead. All that sugar was out of her system, the exhaustion from the dark room finally catching up to her. "Where are we goin'?" Shiro sat down on the edge of her bed as she continued to rub her slightly itchy eyes, the bright overhead light of the Atlas so different from the lantern that she used to fall asleep next to.

"Down to the surface. Have you ever been off planet before?"

Ayla shook her head. Her mother had always told her that she shouldn't venture out there. That it was dangerous. Bad people could hurt her and do horrible things to her, and her mother hadn't wanted Ayla to leave her for such a horrible place.

"Oh! Well then this'll be fun! Why don't you get dressed and then we'll go down to the mess hall?" Shiro grinned. This was the first time Ayla had seen him wear his regalia in a while, so she had to take it in as she nodded again. "Okay then! I'll meet you outside."

Now that she thought hard about it, Shiro was being reeeeeeally weird. Like he had sugar… yeah! He probably had sugar or something! Ayla shrugged as she took her smaller version of his uniform out of her dresser, brushing off the orange shoulders. It was way too big for her, but Veronica had rolled up the sleeves and said that she looked adorable. It made her face just pucker up at the thought of being called "cute". The whole bridge crew had been fawning over her as she tried to escape, eventually running to find Shiro. That had been a while ago, so she now struggled, trying to remember how Veronica had done it. In the end, the sleeves were all wrinkled and weirdly curled up. Pouting a little, she let the sleeves dangle, trudging out of her room.

Shiro was hovering outside the door when she came out, a small smile on his face. The smile grew when he noticed her uniform. "Awww… look how cute you are." He grinned, picking her up and spinning her around. Ayla couldn't help but let a few giggles escape her as the world blurred around them. Finally, she was set down, completely dizzy, as she giggled, flapping her long sleeves a little bit. "I'm dizzy…" She said in a small voice, the world spinning around her without her consent. No… it can't spin! She didn't give her eyes permission to-

"Oops, I might have spun around too much." She giggled as Shiro swayed on his feet, grabbing her hand. "Ooooooh… my head."

Ayla blinked, the spinning feeling beginning to wear off already. "Are you okay, daddy?"

"Yeah. Just hit my head yesterday when I was trying to find you." He rubbed the back of his head slightly, wincing. "Don't you dare worry about me."

Ayla looked down, suddenly feeling bad. She'd gotten daddy hurt… because she ran away. Instead of looking at the ground, she focused on the badly tucked edges of her pants, boots reminding her of her mothers. "_I used to go off world in these babies all the time! Maybe someday you'll get them, if you grow bigger!" _The faint memory of her mother spinning her around and tickling her in their little wood hut made Ayla feel even worse. _**Mommy's dead.**_ Her mind reminded her softly. _**You're alone and have no one to care about you like she did anymore.**_

_No, daddy loves me! _She argued back. The feeling of emptiness began to set in again, the feeling of being alone that she thought was gone. _He wants me and cares about me!_

_**...Does he really?**_

_Yes!_

_**He's lying and pretending. Remember that game? Pretending is what they all do. They all just think you're a cute toy to dress up and be nice to. They don't actually care. He doesn't care. He was lying-**_

Ayla let out a little whimper. He wasn't lying when he said that it was okay to cry! He wasn't lying when he said that she would be okay! Covering her ears in attempt to shut out the voice, she faintly heard her name being called. "Aylaaaaa…"

"No…"

"Ayla! Ayla, are you okay?"

Opening her eyes, Shiro came into focus, kneeling in front of her. "Ayla... "

"I'm okay." She whispered. Since when was there a voice in her head fighting back? She wasn't aware that she was crying until Shiro reached up, wiping away a stray tear that had escaped down her face. "You're okay? Are you sure?" He said with a little chuckle. "I think crying means that you need a hug."

Ayla bit back a sob. Did he mean it? Did he really? Shiro opened his arms, raising an eyebrow. "Ayla? Come on, don't let daddy down… c'mere!"

A strong arm suddenly wrapped around her as she let out a tiny squeak. Shiro was strong… it felt nice. His robotic arm was also comforting, with its gentle hum against her back. White hair, like hers, gently drifted down onto his forehead, and his huge frame dominated her skeletal one, making her feel like the smallest girl in the universe. It was almost like the whole galaxy could fit in his arms, her little galaxy, and it would stop spinning if he left. That one moment she felt safe. She wanted to stay there, and be safe forever.

"Feel better?"

"Yeah…"

…

Ryner, in one word, was pissed. Her smile was strained, and her eyes were anything but friendly. Well, they were kind towards Ayla. _Right. I promised I would be here a whole day or two ago… _Shiro had his own strained smile plastered on his face as Ryner walked over to them, two Olkarian guards following close behind. "Finally. Captain Shirogane shows his face at last." She murmured, her clever eyes studying his face. "And with more wrinkles, if I would be honest to say so myself."

Shiro didn't know what to say to that. Did he have more wrinkles? Ayla had certainly made him lose quite a bit of sleep, and the worry practically wanted to make his head explode, but he was too young to be getting old man wrinkles! It was like his body wanted to make him old before he even turned thirty! Ayla glanced up at him curiously, bright blue eyes reminding him of the sky back on Earth. And some memories he didn't want to dwell on. The plaque with a name he never wanted to forget, his arm, his parents… no. He had other things to worry about right now, rather than a bunch of dead people. It hurt, but Ayla was more important right now.

"Captain?" Shiro blinked, realizing he'd been quiet for a second too long. "Is everything alright?"

"Yeah! I mean, of course!" He almost stumbled over his words, responding too fast. "I was just… thinking about my next salvage…" He rubbed the back of his neck, an embarrassed hue coming over his cheeks. Wow, he was going off the deep end today, wasn't he? He'd spent most of the previous night awake, worried that Ayla would suddenly vanish. It was a petty fear, but after telling her a story to make her fall asleep after a nightmare, he'd fallen asleep on the floor next to her bed for a while. Luckily, when a miserable memory decided to be his alarm clock at two in the morning, he didn't protest. Another nightmare about the galra, just with more teeth. Not to mention, Honerva had appeared again, saying something along the lines of: "_You still have something that's mine, captain. I'm coming to get her, so don't worry about your crew. It'll be over soon-"_

Yeah, something like that. Ryner just sighed, shaking her head as she faintly smiled. "Fine then. As long as you're not going crazy, I think we can work today. Would you mind introducing me to this fine little lady in the meantime?"

"Of course." Shiro looked down at Ayla. "Unless she wants to."

Ayla shrugged. "Okay! Hi, I'm Ayla!" Ayla didn't wave. Instead, she bowed at the waist, putting a finger to her forehead and extended it out, pointing to Ryner in a very strange fashion. Ryner seemed confused, her green face twisting into a hopeful and odd smile as she compiled the gesture. "Kiami Ayla, I'm Ryner."

"Evast no farthe." Ayla murmured. "Ryner."

Ryner nodded. "Evast no farthe."

Ayla stood, glancing over at Shiro. "Did I do it right?" She asked innocently. Shiro, in all honesty, had no clue what she'd done, but he simply nodded, hair floof flopping in his face. "Yeah, it was great, Ayla." Ayla smiled and turned back to Ryner. "So what are we doing here?"

Ryner glanced over at Shiro. "Well, the transmission your…" She seemed to search for the right word for a moment, the gem on her forehead distractingly catching the light. "...guardian sent me wasn't very specific, but he mentioned a galra tracking chip in your arm. He was hoping to see if we could deactivate it, or somehow get it out of you."

Ayla's face went paper white, her smile dropping instantly. "T-take it out of me?" She whimpered, hiding behind Shiro's leg. Was that fear that he just saw in her eyes? "Like… t-take my a-arm off?"

"No!" Shiro turned back to look at her, shaking his head. "No, we're just going to see what it does, okay?"

Ayla looked doubtful, but hesitantly turned to Ryner. "Will you… t-take my arm off?" She asked hesitantly, her blue eyes filled with tears about to fall.

Ryner looked slightly taken off guard as she smiled, stepping forwards and putting a gentle hand on Ayla's head. "Of course not. We're just going to take a look at you, and see what there is to see, like Captain Shirogane said." She glanced up at Shiro, before returning her gentle gaze to Ayla. "Don't worry about taking arms off. It's just a quick scan, and then it'll be done. Okay?"

Shiro was shocked at how well Ryner handled a child on the verge of tears. He could hardly stop Ayla from continuously crying, and it was a rare occasion when he stopped her crying before it could even start. Yet, Ryner had stopped the whole chaos and catastrophe by sitting there and telling Ayla things that Shiro had already said. Wow.

Ayla, as a matter of fact, was nodding at the statement, wiping her eyes on her sleeve. "Now, if you would come with me, we'll get you all scanned up and ready, hm?" Ryner extended a hand, which Ayla took with surprising trust. Ayla didn't even know Ryner! Shiro still trusted the Olkari with Ayla, but still. She needed to learn that all strangers weren't friendly.

The whole scan itself went fine. Raion stood in the little wooden pod, peering out through the tinted glass as Shiro came up behind Ryner, peeking over her shoulder. "Find anything… useful?"

"Many things about her are "useful". Like the fact that at her estimated growth rate, she'll have hypersensitive eyes and ten times her current strength." Ryner smirked at Shiro's dumbfounded expression. "And that she's actually not even half Kiamian. Most of her DNA is a mix of Altean, human, and a tiny sliver of galra." Ayla put her face against the glass of the pod, waving at Shiro as he smiled, waving back.

"Why?" He couldn't help but to ask the question. "Was it on purpose?"

"Of course it was. Things don't happen in such… exact portions in nature." Ryner continued to type at her holopad, another wave of green light going through Ayla's pod. The girl gasped and looked around in amazement as faint blue lights drifted down around her, laughing and trying to poke them. "Her brain can also hold twice as much information as most species in the known galaxy."

"So someone engineered her?"

Ryner glanced back, looking slightly impressed. "Well, you figured that out quickly. Yes, she was biologically engineered, but it seems like something went wrong, or she was… exposed to something that disrupted her DNA." Ryner stepped aside a little so he could see the screen. "She has an unusual amount of quintessence in her blood."

Shiro's brow furrowed as he read the reports. Most of her vitals were frighteningly above what he'd been trained to recognize as "normal". Ayla, in the meantime, was fascinated in looking at something outside the sunlit window, almost entranced. "Is that bad?"

"Not necessarily. But someone built her to be a powerful machine. Not in the sense of being a robot, but she's built to be an organic machine."

Shiro blinked, slightly confused. "But why? Why would someone want something like that? Especially in a little girl?"

"It's obvious. They want a superweapon. And, let's not forget that the chip in her arm is homing to a ship nearby. An ancient ship, by the look of its power signatures."

Shiro looked up, terror suddenly taking root in his stomach. "Ancient… ship?"

"Yes. Altean, by the looks of it. Why?"

"Oh no."

Note: AND SO THE EXCITEMENT BEGINS!

And a second update!

So Ayla is built to be a killing machine, in all sense of the world, and Honerva's finally here for her lost creation! But, as not to spoil how this fight ends, I can say no more. In the meantime, please leave me a review to let me know how I'm doing, and hopefully I'll be coming out with the next chapter soon!

Stay safe and thanks for reading!

(P.S. Evast no farthe is Kiamian for "stars guide you")


	8. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven- Arminia**

**Trigger warning: This chapter includes some violence, blood, harm, and is generally heavy. If you are uncomfortable with any of these topics, skip past the part with this symbol before it: (***). I'll be sure to put a recap at the end note!**

_My dearest Arminia._

Honerva clenched her fists as she paced the dark room, probing, _**searching **_for the sign that had led her here. The presence that she'd longed to find for so long, finally a hair's width away.

_My love, my light._

Arminia, her most prized creation. One that she'd carried for several months, without Zarkon knowing. The jewel that she wanted to keep safe forever, even if it cost her life. It wasn't like Lotor. Lotor was… hurtable. Lotor was vulnerable in places where she knew Arminia wouldn't be. Lotor felt pity. Arminia wouldn't.

_Why did they take you from me? What gave them the right!_

With a shout of frustration, Honerva stopped pacing, punching the wall in front of her. Gasping for a moment, the faint feeling of Arminia's presence bled back into her, the faint feeling of warmth, wrapped in hostility. "Why…?" Honerva murmured to no one in particular, her knees giving way. Arminia was gone. Lost. She'd vanished that night, never to return. Honerva, Haggar… both sides of her ached to feel her child's light again, her soft silver hair and see her lovely blue eyes. The perfect clone. Part of her champion. Carried in her womb for months, the feeling of satisfaction and longing wrapped together. Gone. Taken away by the monstrosities that called themselves the "Resurgence". She could still see the face of Arminia's kidnapper, etched into her mind like a bleeding wound.

_I'll get you back, whatever it takes._

"Lady Honerva?"

Honerva whirled around to see her co-commander, Fierra, standing in the doorway. "What?" She hissed, her fist bleeding from where it had stricken the wall. Her white robes turned red on the edge as Fierra dropped to one knee, her fiery colored hair falling over her shoulder. "We're within range. The human ship is grounded, so we can get a hit now if we act fast!"

"Don't." She couldn't destroy the humans. Not yet. They'd taken Lotor from her… but she would give them their own medicine when the time came. "If _Voltron-_" She spat the name. A curse that had ended all she'd worked for. "-comes to engage, then do what you must to send the message. But do **not **engage their flagship…" She glanced over at the excited Altean, silently cursing their leader for giving her such a… trigger quick second in command. "Unless I tell you to."

"Yes, Lady Honerva!" Fierra bowed, grinning. "I'll see to it immediately!"

With that, the altean ran away, leaving Honerva alone again. The witch pulled open a portal, her champion's presence nearby once again. "Time to test our connection, _captain._" Tracing a purple circle in the air, a window opened to the planet below, the captain and a tiny girl beside him running quickly across the Olkarian surface. "I hope you like it."

…

"We're almost there!" Shiro shouted over his panting breaths. Ayla was shaking at this point, having spotted the giant form of Oriande, floating just above the cloud cover. She seemed numb, clutching his hand as tight as she dared, while wide blue eyes watched, little sobs and hiccups shaking her body dangerously. "Ayla?"

The little Kiamian- or whatever species she was- didn't look at him, her gaze locked on the altean ship. A strangled gasp forced itself out of her throat in response. "Scared…" She whispered, her grip tightening to a point where Shiro couldn't feel the tips of his fingers anymore. Oh, he hoped that Keith would be able to calm her down later, since nothing he was doing helped!

"It's okay! Nothing's going to happen to you!" Shiro turned back to face her, kneeling in front of the tiny war machine. "Just run, and we'll worry about everything else later, okay?"

"But-" Ayla let out another sob, covering her face with her sleeve. "-But I'm scared! I wanna go home…"

Shiro smiled, a cold sweat suddenly breaking out on his back. What was going on? He could feel something, something very wrong in the back of his mind. Like something bad was about to happen, but he couldn't place it. Stumbling over his words, he tried to ignore the building pain, like someone was about to explode a bomb in the back of his head. "We'll go- ah!" He grit his teeth, another sharp pain rooting itself in his skull. "We'll go back to the ship, okay? There's no reason to be- AH!"

The world suddenly blurred around him as he let go of Ayla's hand, his body feeling like there were boulders attaching themselves to him, dragging him down. Ayla let out a cry as he pitched forwards, a faint whisper making his back prickle.

_Captain… I warned you. You _**will **_give me what's mine!_

"No…" He struggled to spit out the words, his numb body hitting the ground. His ears rang, Ayla's panicked face full of tears faded in and out, and his body hurt. He was numb and on fire, both trying to get rid of the other. "No… Ayla…"

"SHIRO!" Ayla screamed, but he couldn't see her.

His vision was dark. He felt his body fade away. He'd felt this before. Ayla's scream still echoed in the back of his mind as he whirled around, trying to figure out where he was. The black lion's dreamscape? No, it was just darkness. Suffocating darkness. He choked, hearing a faint hissing as something appeared behind him.

"I warned you, _Captain. _You didn't heed my warnings, did you?"

"What- do you mean…" Shiro wheezed, the alien feeling in his lungs making every gasp tickle. It hurt as well, like spikes trying to bury themselves inside him.

The person behind him walked around his side, her familiar voice making certain bad memories return from the pit he'd locked them in. "You have something I need, Captain. The girl. I'll have no choice but to take her from you, since you resist me."

"A-Ayla?" Shiro choked on the words, the horrid air still making him wince each time it pressed at him harder. "Why…?" He fell to his knees, this world blurring as well.

"She's mine. Always wasss… mine. They took her from me… and I'll take her **BACK!**"

Honerva suddenly came into his vision, her fists curled. "Unless you don't want your precious ship full of humans to die... maybe then you'll consider handing her over."

"What- I don't-" Shiro gasped again, the fist around his lungs piercing them even more.

"You have a few minutes. Do what I ask… and I might consider letting your precious little coalition live. For now."

Shiro's vision went blank once again.

… (***)

Ayla was panicking. Shiro advanced towards her, eyes glowing an eerie purple color as she dodged another one of his grabs, hot tears running down her face. "SHIRO!" She screamed again. He wouldn't hurt her. He wouldn't!

The bruise on her arm said otherwise. Once Shiro had woken up, his eyes were glowing an unsettling purple, and he'd grabbed her arm, slamming her into the soil. This wasn't Shiro! Dodging another grab, she ran towards the giant looming ship, where several people were racing towards them, shouting. From one of the sides of the ship, a door opened, five lions shooting out while Ayla screamed, a fist wrapping around her hair. NO! She struggled, kicking and screaming as she was lifted off the ground, the purple glare of Shiro's eyes paralyzing her with fear. THIS WASN'T HER DAD!

It didn't matter. The people running at them wouldn't get to her in time. She glanced back at Shiro, kicking at his chest and still screaming hoarsely, trying to break free or do something! It didn't work, no matter what she did as the giant ship began to lift off the ground, the lions still flying to intercept the large, white ship. Her blood hummed, trying to get her to kick Shiro's face, but she couldn't! He was her dad, she couldn't just-

"AYLA!" Someone screamed, a voice she knew. Aiming a kick at Shiro's face, she silently hoped that they'd get here faster, since the situation was getting worse.

_CRACK! _Shiro let out a roar as he dropped her, the tiny Kiamian landing on her side, letting out a tiny cry. Blood trickled down Shiro's face, out of his nose as she scrambled to her feet, glancing back one last time. Matt and some of the other people who worked in the giant ship bay were running towards her, the singing in her blood reminding her of the one time she fought of a Rigamole when she was two. She didn't know how she remembered it, but something in her blood told her to hit him again. This wasn't Shiro! She had to free him!

"AYLA, WAIT!" Matt shouted again, but she was already moving. The dirt around her blurred as she ran forwards, one arm coiled back as Shiro moved to grab her again. Heading straight towards him, she let out an unearthly scream, grabbing him around the waist and pushing him over with all her might.

With another sharp _crack!, _they hit the ground, Shiro's own cry blending with her own as he grabbed her arms, grip like the one of the glowing eyes in the dark. She struggled even more frantically, one of his hands failing as she punched again, this time hitting him in the side of the head.

_**Hit him again!**_ Her blood screamed, wanting to hurt him. Wanting to hear him scream.

_Wait, no!_

It was too late. With a sickening crunch, she punched him again, more blood making her vision go blank. Shiro's scream made her suddenly snap out of it, his grip completely off her arm as she looked down, seeing the man who'd accepted her and cared for her on the ground, not moving. "No…" She could hardly squeak, the feeling of fear and disbelief filling her. She wanted to throw up! She did this! She hurt Shiro!

"Ayla!" Matt grabbed her shoulders as she nearly fell over, her stomach in her throat. She hurt daddy… she… hurt Shiro. Without warning, she suddenly collapsed, everything she'd eaten earlier coming up before she could do something.

"Holy shit!" Someone yelled as her stomach reared up again, making her shake even harder. "Ayla, are you okay?"

No. No, she wasn't okay.

…(***)

The connection cut. Honerva let out a scream of frustration, sinking to the floor as the spell cut off. The lingering image of the girl hovered in the air for a moment, silver hair streaming out behind her as a feral scream froze the girl's face, contorted in rage. "Arminia…" She murmured, panting slightly as the magic suddenly seeped out of her, leaving her shaking and cold. "Arminia…" She whispered again, the sound of the door opening behind her lost in the rush of memories that she'd forgotten for so long rushing back.

"_Look Arminia." The stars shone through the window of the battle cruiser, the child against her chest gently letting out a squeal of delight as she was bounced a little, blue eyes alight with glee. Honerva gestured to the window, but the baby looked up at her instead of the vast mess of stars outside, making the witch sigh in frustration. _

"_That will be your kingdom, someday. You'll rule by our side, and one day, lead our battalions to victory!" The dying hiss of her voice made the baby whimper, the pale skinned child hiding her face in her blanket. "Don't worry… you don't understand yet-" Honerva gently guided Arminia's face out of the soft black blanket, leaning down to plant a kiss on her forehead. "But you will, someday."_

"_Zarkon, you summoned me?"_

"_Yes." The emperor's gaze made the witch shiver, his armor shifting slightly as he stood. "You've been hididng something from me. I want to know what it is."_

_The witch felt a chill run down her back. How had she been figured out? Her experiments had been going well, so she'd spent extra time in the lab, perfecting the champion and her specimen. Zarkon… must've taken notice. She silently cursed herself as she shook her head. "It is nothing important to your reign, my lord." She said, trying to avoid his statement. "Don't worry over unimportant things such as my experiments."_

"_If it is disrupting your work, it is __**important.**_" _The emperor spat the words, making the witch flinch. "Get the champion in the ring, NOW!"_

"_GO GO GO! WE HAVE WHAT WE CAME FOR!" The faint shout came down the hall as Honerva pulled on her hood, the loud noise of someone breaching her section of the ship having woken her up. The sirens wailed as the corridors flashed with red light, making her hiss slightly. "TERISS, LET'S GO!"_

_As Honerva rounded the corner, she spotted them. Three people in black armor, one of them clutching __**her **__baby. "NO!" She snarled, purple lightning illuminating her face as she sent a bolt straight down the hall at the perpetrators. The one with her baby dodged the bolt just in time, the other two charging down the hall at the witch, humming blue blades making her lip curl up in disgust. With a single bolt, they were both laying on the floor, the one with her baby making her escape already. __**You can't escape! **__Darting around the corner after her, the witch strained to run, the invader too much faster than she was. "NO!" Another scream forced itself from her throat as she tripped over the hem of her robes, falling to the floor as the woman rounded the corner, dark skin and red markings forever etching themselves in her memory._

"Arminia… don't leave me…"

Note: This chapter was painful to write.

But anyways, running on 48 hours of no sleep and a bunch of caffeine is not the way I expected to write this, but... we're here now. This whole chapter was originally much more full of fighting and Voltron battle scenes, but I decided against it, since I suck at writing any kind of battle scenes whatsoever.

But a recap for those of you who skipped part of it:

Basically, Shiro gets controlled by Honerva, and accidentally hurts Ayla, and she beats him up pretty bad. That's it, in a nutshell.

Anyways, this chapter wasn't my best, since I hate hurting my characters, and just got back from vacation, so please let me know what you thought! I would also like to thank those of you who have constantly reviewed my chapters, and given me some advice! Don't worry, next chapter we'll have plenty of drama with them, since these days they've been slowly crumbling into oblivion. And Ayla isn't about to get any better, so I hope that ya'll are ready for the emotional roller coaster that's about to happen!

Also, I'm considering making a second part to this once it reaches the end, so please let me know what you think about a follow up series after the drama of this part settles!

Stay safe, and have a wonderful day (or night!)


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